The Washington Nationals are scheduled to play the Cleveland Guardians on Monday night in Cleveland, and the game sends a second-place Washington club into the home of a first-place team that has won eight of its last 10 games. Cleveland has built that position while Tanner Bibee has put together a 3.75 ERA in 2026 without earning a win through 11 outings, leaving the right-hander with an odd line and the Guardians with a troubling 2-9 mark in his starts.
Bibee’s record has not matched his run prevention, and that disconnect makes this matchup worth watching because Washington comes in with a bullpen that has been hittable all season. The Nationals' relief corps owns a 4.77 ERA and has allowed 35 home runs in 2026, numbers that have repeatedly turned late innings into problems. Against a Cleveland lineup that has been finishing games with momentum, that vulnerability could matter fast.
The pitching edge on the Washington side is complicated by Zack Littell, who has taken the mound for a 5.83 ERA this season and ranks in the first percentile in expected ERA. Washington has gone 5-5 in Littell's outings, a split that suggests the club has found enough support to stay afloat, but the underlying numbers are far less encouraging. He has allowed two or fewer earned runs in all four of his May starts, yet he has also given up 15 home runs in 10 starts, and the long ball remains the clearest threat in his profile.
That sets up a meeting between two teams in different places. Cleveland is in first place in the AL Central and has played like a club trying to widen the gap, while Washington has climbed into second place in the NL East this season and is still trying to prove it can hold that position. The matchup also gives José Ramírez a favorable spot against the Nationals and Littell, which adds another layer of pressure on a Washington staff already working from behind.
The bigger issue for the Nationals is not just whether they can keep up Monday night, but whether their pitching can survive a road game against a team that has been doing the little things better and waiting for mistakes to turn into runs. Cleveland has the better recent form, the stronger division standing and the more reliable starter on paper. Washington brings the offense and a few encouraging stretches from Littell, but it also brings a bullpen that has made too many games fragile. That is the gap the Guardians can exploit.
